Examples Of Informal Cultural Norms
Breaching Norms: Personal Space
Informal cultural norms play an important role when interacting with the public. “They let us know how to behave around each other and how to feel comfortable in our community”
(OpenStax College 2015:63). Personal space is one of the many informal cultural norms most people within our society conform to. To test this norm, I went to a popular mall where people from all walks of life can be found and imposed on the personal space of other shoppers. Most people feel some sort of discomfort when a stranger enters their space, and I expect most will move away in order to retain their space, or some might give a dirty look since most people abide by this social norm.
During my experiment I realized that most people had …show more content…
some sort of reaction when entering their personal space. Most people had a physical response once I crossed the invisible border of their territory. “Personal space is the region surrounding a person which they regard as psychologically theirs. Most people value their personal space and feel discomfort, anger, or anxiety when their personal space is encroached” (Hall 1966). As I moved past their comfort zone many people reacted by moving further away, giving an awkward glance, and sometimes leaving the general area altogether. I realized that there was a certain distance that most strangers found to close for comfort. Once I crossed the line into their territory, I could physically see the discomfort and perplexed reaction of the fellow shoppers. “Extending from 4 to 12 feet away from us is social space, in which people feel comfortable conducting routine social interactions
Frances Lanthier: place in 1st paragraph this is your point of reference and explains how you are breaching a norm.
2 with new acquaintances...”(Wolchover 2012). The stranger’s reaction left me feeling somewhat embarrassed and though not one stranger said anything, I felt as though I was being publicly ridiculed. The people moving away from me and giving dirty looks left me feeling self- conscience about how I was acting. People were giving me social cues to show that my behavior was not acceptable when talking with people I have never met before.
Many people reacted how I predicted, but there was one shopper that caught me by surprise. When sitting next to an older woman on a public bench of the mall, instead of moving away or looking at e in annoyance and discomfort, she asked me about my day. To my surprise the women used the intimate closeness as means of starting a conversation. “Personal space is highly variable, and can be due to cultural differences and personal experiences” (Bizshift-
Trends 2013).
Depending on where a person comes from and their personal experiences they’ve had, might change how much space one needs to feel comfortable when talking with a stranger. I can only suspect that this women was either being polite or had a smaller personal space than most people. This woman’s reaction made me realize that everyone has their boundaries, but those boundaries are different for everyone.
Informal social norms are silent rules that most people abide by in society. When these social norms like intruding on someone’s personal space are broken, people will react in different ways. Some will physically move away and others will give a dirty look, but both reactions sent the same message of public humiliation. Both reaction made me feel embarrassed and uncomfortable because I knew I was breaching social norms. The reactions received from fellow shoppers made me realize that following these social norms is important when interacting with members of my community. The shopper’s reactions left me feeling like an outsider which made me recognize that following within these norms will make maneuver through life
and
3 society more comfortable. This experiment also proves people can differ in these social norms on what they find acceptable. Though everyone has a personal bubble, some people’s bubble is increased or decreased depending on their personal experiences. Social norms are important because they give us a guideline of what is acceptable in a public setting and how to interact with others in society.
Informal cultural norms play an important role when interacting with the public. “They let us know how to behave around each other and how to feel comfortable in our community”
(OpenStax College 2015:63). Personal space is one of the many informal cultural norms most people within our society conform to. To test this norm, I went to a popular mall where people from all walks of life can be found and imposed on the personal space of other shoppers. Most people feel some sort of discomfort when a stranger enters their space, and I expect most will move away in order to retain their space, or some might give a dirty look since most people abide by this social norm.
During my experiment I realized that most people had …show more content…
some sort of reaction when entering their personal space. Most people had a physical response once I crossed the invisible border of their territory. “Personal space is the region surrounding a person which they regard as psychologically theirs. Most people value their personal space and feel discomfort, anger, or anxiety when their personal space is encroached” (Hall 1966). As I moved past their comfort zone many people reacted by moving further away, giving an awkward glance, and sometimes leaving the general area altogether. I realized that there was a certain distance that most strangers found to close for comfort. Once I crossed the line into their territory, I could physically see the discomfort and perplexed reaction of the fellow shoppers. “Extending from 4 to 12 feet away from us is social space, in which people feel comfortable conducting routine social interactions
Frances Lanthier: place in 1st paragraph this is your point of reference and explains how you are breaching a norm.
2 with new acquaintances...”(Wolchover 2012). The stranger’s reaction left me feeling somewhat embarrassed and though not one stranger said anything, I felt as though I was being publicly ridiculed. The people moving away from me and giving dirty looks left me feeling self- conscience about how I was acting. People were giving me social cues to show that my behavior was not acceptable when talking with people I have never met before.
Many people reacted how I predicted, but there was one shopper that caught me by surprise. When sitting next to an older woman on a public bench of the mall, instead of moving away or looking at e in annoyance and discomfort, she asked me about my day. To my surprise the women used the intimate closeness as means of starting a conversation. “Personal space is highly variable, and can be due to cultural differences and personal experiences” (Bizshift-
Trends 2013).
Depending on where a person comes from and their personal experiences they’ve had, might change how much space one needs to feel comfortable when talking with a stranger. I can only suspect that this women was either being polite or had a smaller personal space than most people. This woman’s reaction made me realize that everyone has their boundaries, but those boundaries are different for everyone.
Informal social norms are silent rules that most people abide by in society. When these social norms like intruding on someone’s personal space are broken, people will react in different ways. Some will physically move away and others will give a dirty look, but both reactions sent the same message of public humiliation. Both reaction made me feel embarrassed and uncomfortable because I knew I was breaching social norms. The reactions received from fellow shoppers made me realize that following these social norms is important when interacting with members of my community. The shopper’s reactions left me feeling like an outsider which made me recognize that following within these norms will make maneuver through life
and
3 society more comfortable. This experiment also proves people can differ in these social norms on what they find acceptable. Though everyone has a personal bubble, some people’s bubble is increased or decreased depending on their personal experiences. Social norms are important because they give us a guideline of what is acceptable in a public setting and how to interact with others in society.